From your own experience, what advice would you give other women for their wedding day?
Pick what you love and don't spend any time second guessing your choices. I am a very decisive person and that gave me comfort because I knew I made the right choices the first time around.
My second piece of advice is to pick the best wedding vendors and put trust in them that they know what they're doing. I was so confident in my people that I never had to worry if they knew how to do their job correctly.
My third and final piece of advice is to use a wedding planner. It allows you to enjoy being the bride!
Looking back, are there any details from your wedding that you would have changed or excluded?
I think everything was perfect. Even if it wasn't actually perfect it all felt perfect to us!
In your opinion, what are some good ways to keep costs low when planning a wedding?
Decide what your priorities are and use that to help you decide where to spend your money. I thought about what meant the most to me (dress, style, photography, flowers, and reception) and Chase (band, beer, food and fun) and went off of that. When I had to make choices about budget I went with things that still got across that feeling or look I was going for but maybe cut it back in scale or number.
In what ways did you make your wedding and reception different from all the rest?
I wanted our wedding day to really represent us. The style of dresses, tuxes, flowers, invitations, and decor were all reflections of our style. Everything about our reception showed our personalities. Our reception was held at my parents' house. There isn't a more "me" space than my home with my family. It was beautiful but still very relaxed. I picked what I loved and I think when you do that, your personality will show.
What was your favorite detail about your wedding and reception?
I don't have one favorite detail about the reception. My favorite part was seeing all of the details come together. It was all of the little details that we put thought into that came out so perfectly when they were all put together.
My favorite detail pre-wedding was our Save the Date. We have dated since junior high and we made a timeline of some of our favorite memories together. It sort of told our story to our guests and makes a great keepsake for us to have.
What was your favorite experience or memory from your wedding or reception?
I don't know if it was my favorite at the time...but looking back my favorite memory would have to be when I was standing with my Dad and the doors of the church opened for me to walk down the aisle. I was so overwhelmed/excited that I was about to get married that I burst out into tears...and continued to cry until the ceremony was over.
Favorite memory of the reception would be my Dad busting a move to a Rolling Stones song. It involved a lot of air guitar moves. It was hysterical because it was really the last thing I was expecting.
What is the best way to keep your guests excited and involved at the reception, so they won't leave early?
I think it helps to have a great location, great band, good food and lots to drink. HA! Seriously, the band is key. If people aren't dancing they just won't stay as long. It helps when the reception has a good flow to it. Older people will leave early and so the first dance and cutting the cake should happen fairly early so that they get to see what they want to see.
What do you suggest as good wedding music? Live or CD?
I suggest LIVE music 100%!!!! We had an organist play and then we also had someone sing a solo. The church had a list of approved songs and I went through and listened to them and picked what I thought was pretty. It is simple and I loved my choices.
What is something that stressed you out while planning, and how did you alleviate that stress and what solution did you find for the problem?
I am not a major stresser (side note from Jenessa: Brittany, Chase, and their families are ROCKSTARS at not stressing out!!!), however the reception was indoor and outdoor. The weather was nasty leading up to the wedding and we had to look at other options for the reception venue. I didn't want to have it anywhere other than my house but I also didn't want my guests to be in a flood zone. So we looked at other options and came up with a back up plan. The day of the wedding I got up early and had to let Jenessa know by 8AM what my decision was. She is so calming and level headed that it put me at ease. I prayed, talked with everyone, consulted the weatherman, weighed my choices and went with my heart. The weather cleared up and the reception weather was perfect.
What is something you did not expect about planning a wedding that you experienced?
I did not expect to be calm enough to actually enjoy my wedding day. When it came down to the day of the wedding I knew that everything was already taken care of and I didn't have to worry. I got to focus on the experience of the day, and that was really special to me.
Thanks for sharing, Brittany! You will go down in the books as one of the best brides ever and I appreciate how wonderful you and your family were to work with! Brides, take Brittany's wonderful advice and apply it to your wedding day.
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